- Iranian Languages, Kushan history, Hellenistic Bactria, Bactria (Archaeology), Achaemenian Empire, Ancient Arts And Iconography, and 46 moreAncient Greek Iconography, Central Asian Studies, Central Asia, Pre-Islamic Iran, Archaeology, Iranian Art History, Iran, Ancient Iranian Religions, Pre-Islamic Persian Art, Ancient Iran, Parthian Empire, Iconoclastic Controversy and Iconophilia, Sasanian Empire, Iranian History, Iconoclasm, Iranian Studies, Ancient Iranian Religion, Kushans, Iranian Archaeology, Pre-Islamic Persian Literature, Old Iranian Languages, Sasanian History, Kushan art and architecture, Zoroastrianism, Zoroastrianism (History), Kushan empire (Archaeology), Sogdian Archaeology, Sasanian art, Sogdian, Sogdian art, Achaemenid Persia, Achaemenid archaeology, Hellenistic Iconography, Aniconism, Central Asia (History), Pre-Islamic Persian History, Pahlavi, Zoroastrianism (Literature), Avestan (Languages And Linguistics), Pahlavi / Middle Persian (Religion), Parthian Kingdoms, Archaeology of Central Asia, Ai Khanum (Ai Khanoum) (Archaeology), Ancient Persia, Inner Asian Studies, and Eurasian Nomadsedit
- Associate Professor of Pre-Islamic Iranian studies at the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies. His speci... moreAssociate Professor of Pre-Islamic Iranian studies at the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies. His specialization is the study of civilizations and cultures of the pre-Islamic Iranian world through their material remains and visual representations. His research interests encompass the archaeology, art, and religions of pre-Islamic Iran and Central Asia, including Zoroastrianism (with a particular focus on religious iconography), the culture of the Eurasian nomads, the Sogdian civilization, and the “Silk Roads”. He is currently director (together with Dr. Sharof Kurbanov of the Tajik Academy of Sciences) of the excavations at the Sogdian town of Sanjar-Shah (5th-9th centuries CE) in northern Tajikistan.edit
In Intangible Spirits and Graven Images, Michael Shenkar investigates the perception of ancient Iranian deities and their representation in the Iranian cults. This ground-breaking study traces the evolution of the images of these deities,... more
In Intangible Spirits and Graven Images, Michael Shenkar investigates the perception of ancient Iranian deities and their representation in the Iranian cults. This ground-breaking study traces the evolution of the images of these deities, analyses the origin of their iconography, and evaluates their significance. Shenkar also explores the perception of anthropomorphism and aniconism in ancient Iranian religious imagery, with reference to the material evidence and the written sources, and reassesses the value of the Avestan and Middle Persian texts that are traditionally employed to illuminate Iranian religious imagery. In doing so, this book provides important new insights into the religion and culture of ancient Iran prior to the Islamic conquest.
Research Interests: Iconography, Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Iconoclasm, Iranian Studies, and 35 moreCentral Asian Studies, Ancient Religion, Iranian Art History, Achaemenid Persia, Ancient Near East, Bactria (Archaeology), Hellenistic Bactria, Sasanian History, Central Asia, Zoroastrianism (History), Ancient Iranian Religion, Kushan empire (Archaeology), Kushan art and architecture, Kushan history, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, Sogdian art, Sasanian art, Kushans, Achaemenid archaeology, Parthian Empire, Achaemenian Empire, Sasanian Empire, Sasanian Archaeology, Bactria, Hellenism, Indo-Greeks, Achaemenid Art and Archaeology, Central Asians/Sogdians in China, Kushan and Central Asian Studies, Sasanian numismatics, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Sasanian Rock Reliefs, Parthian Archaeology, Chorasmia, Kushano-Sasanian Numismatics, and Sogdian Culture
The paper discusses the origin of the fire-temples in light of the recent excavations in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. It addresses the place of the fire-worship in the Achaemenid dynastic cult and its complex relations with cultic... more
The paper discusses the origin of the fire-temples in light of the recent excavations in Afghanistan and Uzbekistan. It addresses the place of the fire-worship in the Achaemenid dynastic cult and its complex relations with cultic practices attested in the later Zoroastrian tradition.
Research Interests:
From the dawn of their history, the ancient Iranians preferred to transmit their literary and religious compositions orally. Even after they had established a series of successive empires that ruled a large part of the Middle East for... more
From the dawn of their history, the ancient Iranians preferred to transmit their literary and religious compositions orally. Even after they had established a series of successive empires that ruled a large part of the Middle East for centuries, no tradition of historical writing had ever emerged in the ancient Iranian world, and it seems that only administrative and economic texts were written down. Historical figures and events were molded in epic patterns and became part of the stories, poems and songs that were transmitted orally by professional storytellers. The ancient Iranians were concerned not with preserving the memory of concrete ʻhistorical eventsʼ or ʻfacts,ʼ but rather with creating a meaningful and colorful story. Another important aspect of historical memory in ancient Iran was keeping records of the length of each king’s reign and creating a sequence of rulers. These were the two main components of historical memory in Ancient Iran.
Research Interests:
Biran, Michal, Michael Shenkar, Kubatbek Tabaldiev, Kunbolot Akmatov, and Valery Kolchenko. “The Kök-Tash Underground Mausoleum in North-Eastern Kyrgyzstan: the First-Ever Identified Qara Khitai Elite Tomb?” Journal of the Royal Asiatic... more
Biran, Michal, Michael Shenkar, Kubatbek Tabaldiev, Kunbolot Akmatov, and Valery Kolchenko. “The Kök-Tash Underground Mausoleum in North-Eastern Kyrgyzstan: the First-Ever Identified Qara Khitai Elite Tomb?” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 2023, 1–33. doi:10.1017/S1356186322000621.
Research Interests:
Contact me for the complete pdf.
Research Interests: Umayyads (Islamic History), Early Islamic Archaeology, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, Sogdian art, and 8 moreCentral Asian Archaeology, Central Asian wall paintings on the Silk Road, Early Islamic Central Asia, Archaeology of Tajikistan, Sogdiana, Sogdian Culture, Early Arab conquests, and early islamic conquest
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
“Masters” and “Natives”. Digging the Others’ Past (Svetlana Gorshenina, Philippe Bornet, Michel E. Fuchs, Claude Rapin [Eds.], Berlin: De Gruyter, 2019): Book Discussion Forum (Fiona Kidd, Elise Luneau, Marek Jan Olbrycht, Mikhail... more
“Masters” and “Natives”. Digging the Others’ Past (Svetlana Gorshenina, Philippe Bornet, Michel E. Fuchs, Claude Rapin [Eds.], Berlin: De Gruyter, 2019): Book Discussion Forum (Fiona Kidd, Elise Luneau, Marek Jan Olbrycht, Mikhail Shenkar, Michele Minardi, Gian Luca Bonora, Simon Mantellini, Carlo Lippolis), Bulletin of IICAS, No. 29, 2020, рр. 108-123.
In English.
In English.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
https://brill.com/view/journals/jesh/63/3/article-p357_4.xml The article discusses when, how and why oligarchic, self-governed civic communities (nāf) emerged in Sogdiana. On the basis of primary sources, such as the Kultobe inscriptions... more
https://brill.com/view/journals/jesh/63/3/article-p357_4.xml
The article discusses when, how and why oligarchic, self-governed civic communities (nāf) emerged in Sogdiana. On the basis of primary sources, such as the Kultobe inscriptions , and on comparative material from the two best-known city-state cultures-the Greek poleis and the medieval north Italian republics-it is argued that the development of the Sogdian civic communities occurred during the first century BCE-second century CE, when Sogdiana was part of the nomad-ruled Kangju state. This process is linked to Sogdian colonial expansion and the growth in the volume and complexity of trade.
The article discusses when, how and why oligarchic, self-governed civic communities (nāf) emerged in Sogdiana. On the basis of primary sources, such as the Kultobe inscriptions , and on comparative material from the two best-known city-state cultures-the Greek poleis and the medieval north Italian republics-it is argued that the development of the Sogdian civic communities occurred during the first century BCE-second century CE, when Sogdiana was part of the nomad-ruled Kangju state. This process is linked to Sogdian colonial expansion and the growth in the volume and complexity of trade.
Research Interests: Silk Road, Silk Road Studies, Archaeology of Central Asia, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, and 9 moreCentral Asians/Sogdians in China, Sogdian Coins, Art and Archaeology, Silk Road Archaeology, Archaeology of the Silk Road, City-State, Ancient City-States, Sogdian Culture, History of the Silk Road, and Ancient and Medieval History of Culture of Central Asia
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Aniconism, Ancient Iranian Religion, Archaeology of Central Asia, and 11 moreKushan art and architecture, Ancient Iranian Religions, Sogdian Archaeology, Sasanian art, Central Asian Archaeology, Ancient Iran, Sasanian Archaeology, Achaemenid Art and Archaeology, Art & Archaeology of Iran and Central Asia, Kushite Archaeology, and Parthian Archaeology
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The article discusses the venue and the nature of the coronation ceremony of the Sasanian kings in the third century. It is argued that the coronation of the early Sasanians was a continuation of a Hellenistic ceremony, which was... more
The article discusses the venue and the nature of the coronation ceremony of the Sasanian kings in the third century. It is argued that the coronation of the early Sasanians was a continuation of a Hellenistic ceremony, which was essentially the act of binding a diadem around one’s head. It seems that the common practice was for the king to bind the diadem himself in the presence of a select circle of courtiers or only in the presence of the gods. Furthermore, the article will demonstrate that Ctesiphon was neither the “capital” nor even the most important residence of the early Sasanians and no ceremony of coronation took place there in the third century.
Research Interests:
The article presents two special finds uncovered at the site of Sanjar-Shah during the 2016 archeological season—a bronze pin with a unique finial of two Janus-like faces, and a fragment of a Chinese mirror. The bronze pin has no... more
The article presents two special finds uncovered at the site of Sanjar-Shah during the 2016 archeological season—a bronze pin with a unique finial of two Janus-like faces, and a fragment of a Chinese mirror. The bronze pin has no parallels among Sogdian objects but is strikingly similar to a group of so-called "mace-heads" that originate in Sasanian Iran.We suggest that the design of the Sanjar-Shah pin is inspired by these objects, all of them being modelled on real maces attested in Sogdian paintings. The surviving fragment of the mirror allows us to establish that it belongs to a well-known type of mirror from the Tang period, the Zhenzifeishuang mirror. This is the first time that a mirror of this type has been found outside of China.
Research Interests:
در تفسیر نقش زن در نقش برجسته نرسه در نقش رستم، نوشته میخائیل شنکار، ترجمه از زهرا ثبوت
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Zoroastrianism, Silk Road, Ancient Iranian Religion, Archaeology of Central Asia, Sogdian Archaeology, and 17 moreSogdian, Sogdian art, Polis, Central Asians/Sogdians in China, Sogdian Coins, Art and Archaeology, Greek religion, polis religion, Sourvinou-Inwood, Silk Road Archaeology, Archaeology of the Silk Road, City States, Panjikent, City-states, Sogdiana, City-State, Ancient City-States, Polis Religion, Sogdian Culture, and Iranian Zoroastrian History and Central Asia and Caucasus Area
Persian Translation of Shenkar, M. (2011), "Temple Architecture in the Iranian World in the Hellenistic Period”, in Kouremenos, A., Rossi, R., Chandrasekaran, S. (eds.), From Pella to Gandhara: Hybridisation and Identity in the Art and... more
Persian Translation of Shenkar, M. (2011), "Temple Architecture in the Iranian World in the Hellenistic Period”, in Kouremenos, A., Rossi, R., Chandrasekaran, S. (eds.), From Pella to Gandhara: Hybridisation and Identity in the Art and Architecture of the Hellenistic East, Oxford.
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Bactria (Archaeology), Archaeology of Central Asia, Kushan empire (Archaeology), Art History of Ancient Iran, Kushan art and architecture, and 17 moreKushan history, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, Sogdian art, Kushans, Ancient Iran, Parthian Empire, Kushan Coins, Kushan and Central Asian Studies, Sacred and divine kingship, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Royal Iconography, Royal ideology in the ancient Near East, Nimbus, Kushano-Sasanian Numismatics, Diadem, and Sogdian Culture
The sensational finds made at Tillya Tepe in Northern Afghanistan close to the modern city of Sheberghān, are the primary source for reconstructing the cultural history of Bactria in the turbulent period between the end of Greek rule and... more
The sensational finds made at Tillya Tepe in Northern Afghanistan close to the modern city of Sheberghān, are the primary source for reconstructing the cultural history of Bactria in the turbulent period between the end of Greek rule and the rise of the Kushan Empire. The paucity of written sources from this period (mid second century ВСЕ to mid first century СЕ), and our resulting lack of understanding of even major political and cultural events, has led to its apt characterization as the “Dark Age” of Bactrian history. In this context, a special place should therefore be reserved for archaeological finds and Tillya Tepe is undoubtedly the most important site of this period. The significance of the Tillya Tepe finds for the reconstruction of Bactrian history and its cultural landscape has long been recognized, but they still have much to offer in terms of historical inquiry. In what follows I shall attempt a new reconstruction of the headdress of a “prince” buried in Grave IV and conclude that it allows us to place him within the orbit of the Indo-Parthian Gondopharid dynasty, one of the most powerful
regional political entities of the period.
regional political entities of the period.
Research Interests: Bactria (Archaeology), Hellenistic Bactria, Archaeology of Central Asia, Kushan art and architecture, Kushan history, and 14 moreScythian archaeology, Central Asian Archaeology, Sarmatians, Parthian Art, Tillya Tepe, Ancient Nomads, Art & Archaeology of Iran and Central Asia, Scythian and other Eurasian Nomadic Horse Warrior Cultures, Indo-Scythians, Indo-Parthians, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Parthian Archaeology, Archaeology of Afghanistan, and Yuezhi
Download link: http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/buNZ4eCHESk9Hdx5nPhe/full Or send me a message to get the pdf. The Avesta and the Rig Veda, our earliest sources for the Indo-Iranian religious tradition, contain ideas and elements with... more
Download link: http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/buNZ4eCHESk9Hdx5nPhe/full
Or send me a message to get the pdf.
The Avesta and the Rig Veda, our earliest sources for the Indo-Iranian religious tradition, contain ideas and elements with both aniconic and iconic potential. The cultic iconography in Western and Eastern Iran developed in a remarkably different manner. While the Achaemenian and Sasanian cults were aniconic, Eastern Iranian people, like the Kushans and the Sogdians, not only made use of portrayals of their gods in human form, but also venerated their man-made representations in temples. This article suggests that the reason for this sharp distinction in the nature of the cult between Western and Eastern Iran is the impact of acculturated Greek religious practices, which was much stronger in the East than in the West.
Or send me a message to get the pdf.
The Avesta and the Rig Veda, our earliest sources for the Indo-Iranian religious tradition, contain ideas and elements with both aniconic and iconic potential. The cultic iconography in Western and Eastern Iran developed in a remarkably different manner. While the Achaemenian and Sasanian cults were aniconic, Eastern Iranian people, like the Kushans and the Sogdians, not only made use of portrayals of their gods in human form, but also venerated their man-made representations in temples. This article suggests that the reason for this sharp distinction in the nature of the cult between Western and Eastern Iran is the impact of acculturated Greek religious practices, which was much stronger in the East than in the West.
Research Interests: Zoroastrianism, Aniconism, Zoroastrianism (History), Anthropomorphism, Ancient Iranian Religion, and 12 moreKushan art and architecture, Ancient Iranian Religions, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, Achaemenid archaeology, Ancient Iran, Idolatry, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Religious Iconography, Parthian Archaeology, Ancient Iranian Culture and Languages, and Sogdian Culture
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Zoroastrianism (History), Ancient Iranian Religion, Ancient Iranian Religions, and 7 moreCentral Asian Archaeology, Ancient Iran, Parthian Empire, Parthian Archaeology, Parthia, Old Nisa, Ancient Iranian Culture and Languages, and Iranian Zoroastrian History and Central Asia and Caucasus Area
Research Interests: Arabic Language and Linguistics, Central Asia (History), Islam in Central Asia, Central Asia, Early Islamic Archaeology, and 11 moreArchaeology of Central Asia, Sogdian Archaeology, Arabic Epigraphy, Sogdian, Early Islamic History, Arabic Papyrology, Early and Classical Islamic History, Archaeology of Tajikistan, Sogdiana, History of Paper, and HISTORY OF PAPER INDUSTRY
This article presents a detailed reconsideration of the well-established and canonized theory of “Sasanian iconoclasm” postulated by Mary Boyce in 1975. The Sasanians did not develop any prohibition against anthropomorphic representations... more
This article presents a detailed reconsideration of the well-established and canonized theory of “Sasanian iconoclasm” postulated by Mary Boyce in 1975. The Sasanians did not develop any prohibition against anthropomorphic representations of the gods, and in the surviving Zoroastrian literature and inscriptions there is no evidence of either theological disputes over idols or of a deliberate eradication of them by the Persian kings. Sasanian cult was aniconic, but the historical and archaeological evidence clearly demonstrates that Sasanian visual culture was anything but iconoclastic. It seems that the Persian iconoclastic identity was constructed in the early Sasanian period as a response to the challenges posed by Christianity. By joining the common monotheistic discourse against idolatry, the Zoroastrian clergy adopted the conventions of the world in which they lived. Attacks against “idols” and “idolatry” should be understood in the context of internal and external polemical discourse against beliefs deemed to be erroneous by the Zoroastrian priesthood.
Research Interests:
The article discusses two seals from the recently published collection of Aman Ur Rahman that depict previously unrecognized images of Iranian deities. It is suggested that the first seal, of eastern Sasanian manufacture, depicts a unique... more
The article discusses two seals from the recently published collection of Aman Ur Rahman that depict previously unrecognized images of Iranian deities. It is suggested that the first seal, of eastern Sasanian manufacture, depicts a unique image of the Daēnā accompanied by two dogs. The second seal shows a well-known motif of a chariot of Mithra. The inscription connects it with the Pārata kings and helps to date the seal to the third-fourth centuries CE.
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Central Asian Studies, Ancient Iranian Religion, Kushan empire (Archaeology), and 9 moreKushan art and architecture, Kushan history, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian, Sasanian art, Central Asian Archaeology, Ancient Seals and Sealings, Sasanian Archaeology, and Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times
In this article it is suggested that we should identify an illustration of the epic of Farāmaz (the son of the Iranian national hero Rostam) in one cycle of Sogdian paintings from Panjikent (eighth century CE). The exploits of Farāmarz... more
In this article it is suggested that we should identify an illustration of the epic of Farāmaz (the son of the Iranian national hero Rostam) in one cycle of Sogdian paintings from Panjikent (eighth century CE). The exploits of Farāmarz are known mainly from two poems composed in New Persian in the eleventh-twelfth centuries CE known as the longer and the shorter Farāmrznāmes. If this suggestion is correct, it would mean that these poems as well as other contemporary Persian epics, which are usually neglected by scholars of pre-Islamic Iran, might contain genuine pre-Islamic material.
Research Interests:
Research Interests: Iconography, Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Iranian Studies, Iranian Art History, and 19 moreAchaemenid Persia, Bactria (Archaeology), Sasanian History, Ancient Iranian Religion, Archaeology of Central Asia, Kushan empire (Archaeology), Kushan art and architecture, Sogdian Archaeology, Sogdian art, Sasanian art, Central Asian Archaeology, Kushans, Achaemenid archaeology, Sasanian Empire, Sasanian Archaeology, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Iranian art and archaeology, Ancient Iranian Culture and Languages, and Sogdian Culture
The article discusses an inscription on an ossuary that probably once contained the bones of a woman brought from abroad for burial in Jerusalem by her son, nicknamed ‘Artaka’. Based on his name, it is suggested that he came to Jerusalem... more
The article discusses an inscription on an ossuary that probably once contained the bones of a woman brought from abroad for burial in Jerusalem by her son, nicknamed ‘Artaka’. Based on his name, it is suggested that he came to Jerusalem from Parthiena or Bactria – at that time provinces of the Parthian Empire. If so, this inscription provides unique archaeological evidence connected with the Parthian Diaspora and its pilgrimages to Jerusalem. Moreover, this could be the earliest attestation of the later custom of reinterment in the Land of Israel. The only solid find connected with the presence of Jewish communities in the pre-Islamic Iranian world are the ossuaries inscribed with Jewish names that were excavated in the necropolis of Bayram Ali (7th–8th centuries CE). It is noteworthy that the custom of secondary burial in ossuaries, which existed in Jerusalem in the first century BCE–first century CE, was also widespread in Central Asia, although the two are probably unrelated.
Research Interests: Jewish Studies, Archaeology of Ancient Israel, Iranian Archaeology, Iranian Studies, Jewish History, and 16 moreCentral Asia, Sogdian Archaeology, Hellenistic Roman and Byzantine Archaeology in the Land of Israel, Ancient Jewish History, Iranian Jews, Sogdian, Central Asian Archaeology, Ancient Iran, Parthian Empire, Second Temple Period, Ossuaries, Jerusalem Archaeology, Babylonian talmud, Ancient Jewish Diaspora, Parthian Archaeology, and Jews In Islamic Lands
The article offers a reassessment of the identity of the female figure found on the relief of the Sasanian king Narseh at Naqš-e Rostam. Based on the iconographic analysis of the relief and the discussion of the arguments put forward by... more
The article offers a reassessment of the identity of the female figure found on the relief of the Sasanian king Narseh at Naqš-e Rostam. Based on the iconographic analysis of the relief and the discussion of the arguments put forward by A.Sh.Shahbazi and U.Weber, it is concluded that the figure is not a queen but rather a goddess. She is most probably to be identified with the goddess Anāhitā, to whom Narseh was perhaps personally devoted.
This discussion is followed by a critical examination of the pictorial
representations of Anāhitā in the pre-Islamic Iranian world. It is emphasized
that Anāhitā was a western Iranian goddess whose worship was probably
imported to Bactria after this part of the eastern Iranian world came under
the rule of the Sasanian kings.
This discussion is followed by a critical examination of the pictorial
representations of Anāhitā in the pre-Islamic Iranian world. It is emphasized
that Anāhitā was a western Iranian goddess whose worship was probably
imported to Bactria after this part of the eastern Iranian world came under
the rule of the Sasanian kings.
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Iranian Studies, Iranian Art History, Achaemenid Persia, and 18 moreBactria (Archaeology), Sasanian History, Zoroastrianism (History), Ancient Iranian Religion, Art History of Ancient Iran, Kushan art and architecture, Ancient Iranian Religions, Achaemenid History, Sasanian art, Achaemenid archaeology, Ancient Iran, Sasanian Empire, Achaemenid Art, Sasanian Archaeology, Achaemenid Art and Archaeology, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Sasanian Rock Reliefs, and Iranian art and archaeology
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Iranian Studies, Iranian Art History, Bactria (Archaeology), and 15 moreSasanian History, Ancient Iranian Religion, Archaeology of Central Asia, Art History of Ancient Iran, Kushan art and architecture, Kushan history, Ancient Iranian Religions, Sogdian, Sogdian art, Sasanian art, Kushans, Sasanian Archaeology, Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times, Iranian art and archaeology, and Sogdian Culture
Research Interests: Iranian Archaeology, Zoroastrianism, Iranian Studies, History of Iran, Iranian Art History, and 13 moreAniconism, Achaemenid Persia, Archaeology of Central Asia, Kushan art and architecture, Sogdian Archaeology, Achaemenid History, Ancient Arts And Iconography, Iran, Achaemenid archaeology, Parthian Empire, Sasanian Archaeology, Achaemenid Art and Archaeology, and Archaeology of Central Asia in Parthian, Kushan and Sasanian times
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Discusses the famous drachm kept in the British Museum and known as “The First Jewish Coin”. It is considered by some scholars to be a unique and unparalleled representation of the God of Israel (Yahweh). The paper argues that this coin... more
Discusses the famous drachm kept in the British Museum and known as “The First Jewish Coin”. It is considered by some scholars to be a unique and unparalleled representation of the God of Israel (Yahweh).
The paper argues that this coin was minted in Samaria and could represent the image of a Samarian Yahweh
The paper argues that this coin was minted in Samaria and could represent the image of a Samarian Yahweh
Research Interests:
In recent years it has become evident that the origin of the great Punic goddess Tanit is in Phoenicia. Her cult is attested in Palestine from the Persian to the Late Roman periods. Related finds have been discovered mainly, but not only,... more
In recent years it has become evident that the origin of the great Punic goddess Tanit is in Phoenicia. Her cult is attested in Palestine from the Persian to the Late Roman periods. Related finds have been discovered mainly, but not only, at the sites of coastal cities belonging to the Phoenician cultural sphere. Remarkable evidence for the cult of Tanit might be recognized in the enigmatic deity Phanebalos who appears on the coinage of Ascalon from the reign of Augustus to the closing of the city’s mint in the time of Maximinus. Many attempts have been made to identify this Ascalonian deity; the main obstacle seems to be a difficulty in establishing its sex. On certain coins Phanebalos
appears as a male, while on other types a definitely female figure is depicted.
It is possible that Phanebalos is not one god, but a pair of deities, male and female, probably a local interpretation and development of the Phoenician-
Punic Tanit and Ba‘al Haman.
appears as a male, while on other types a definitely female figure is depicted.
It is possible that Phanebalos is not one god, but a pair of deities, male and female, probably a local interpretation and development of the Phoenician-
Punic Tanit and Ba‘al Haman.
Research Interests:
Call for Papers: The Humanities and Social Sciences Fund Conference titled Collective Sovereignty, Royal Clans, and Sacred Kingship in pre-Modern Central Eurasia The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Ben Gurion University of the Negev,... more
Call for Papers:
The Humanities and Social Sciences Fund Conference titled
Collective Sovereignty, Royal Clans, and Sacred Kingship in pre-Modern Central Eurasia
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Ben Gurion University of the Negev, June 13-15, 2023
The conference will be the first academic forum to systematically examine the connections between joint sovereignty and sacred kingship. Several leading experts already confirmed their participation, but we are also looking for additional papers concerned especially- but not limited to- the cases of the Uighur Empire, the Khazars, the Tang Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty and Muscovy.
Submission of Abstracts:
Please send abstracts- up to 250 words- and short CV to ercmongol@gmail.com until November 1, 2022.
Funding:
The conference will cover accommodation (up to 4 nights in Jerusalem) and-hopefully- depending on existing funding- at least part of the travel expenses.
For queries please contact Michal Biran at ercmongol@gmail.com or Jonathan Brack at brackjon@bgu.ac.il
The Organizing committee: Reuven Amitai, Michal Biran, Jonathan Brack, Michael Shenkar
The Humanities and Social Sciences Fund Conference titled
Collective Sovereignty, Royal Clans, and Sacred Kingship in pre-Modern Central Eurasia
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Ben Gurion University of the Negev, June 13-15, 2023
The conference will be the first academic forum to systematically examine the connections between joint sovereignty and sacred kingship. Several leading experts already confirmed their participation, but we are also looking for additional papers concerned especially- but not limited to- the cases of the Uighur Empire, the Khazars, the Tang Dynasty, the Qing Dynasty and Muscovy.
Submission of Abstracts:
Please send abstracts- up to 250 words- and short CV to ercmongol@gmail.com until November 1, 2022.
Funding:
The conference will cover accommodation (up to 4 nights in Jerusalem) and-hopefully- depending on existing funding- at least part of the travel expenses.
For queries please contact Michal Biran at ercmongol@gmail.com or Jonathan Brack at brackjon@bgu.ac.il
The Organizing committee: Reuven Amitai, Michal Biran, Jonathan Brack, Michael Shenkar
Research Interests: Russian Studies, Chinese Studies, Inner Asian Studies, Political Science, Gender, and 12 moreTang Dynasty, Islamic Studies, History of the Mongol Empire, Central Eurasian Studies, Qing Dynasty (Ch'ing Dynasty), Central Asia, Theories of Sovereignty, Nomadism, Khazar archaeology and history, Sacred and divine kingship, History of Muscovy, and Turkic & Altaic Studies
Call for Enrollment of MA Students The Asian Sphere offers a unique opportunity for outstanding candidates, at the MA and PhD level, to enroll in a multidisciplinary and inter-university graduate program that deals with the Asian continent.
Research Interests:
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem invites applications for a tenure-track position (open rank) in the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, open to all areas of specialization, with preference for scholars of early Islam... more
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem invites applications for a tenure-track position (open rank) in the Department of Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, open to all areas of specialization, with preference for scholars of early Islam (until the 11th century).
https://hum.huji.ac.il/applications-tenure-track?fbclid=IwAR3RfGq3EbYJReveHFdQThbXupJ-oarYE9V8j128RTttyfHSYWmduxmnMz4
https://hum.huji.ac.il/applications-tenure-track?fbclid=IwAR3RfGq3EbYJReveHFdQThbXupJ-oarYE9V8j128RTttyfHSYWmduxmnMz4